I know that at this time of year, a lot of people dream of quitting
Emma:their business, especially after the last few years, I would not blame you.
Emma:And I see a lot of people heading to LinkedIn or seek
Emma:job board just to check out.
Emma:And see if there's an easier way to make money.
Emma:They've had time off of their business.
Emma:They've been at the beach.
Emma:They've had holidays.
Emma:They've been juggling school holidays.
Emma:And business can be brutal, right?
Emma:And they start to think that maybe, maybe they're just not cut out
Emma:for running their own business.
Emma:If you've been feeling like this before you run away, let's dive into a couple
Emma:of questions that may just help you.
Emma:I want you to grab a piece of paper and jot down each question so that we
Emma:can go back to it after this episode.
Emma:Yeah?
Emma:Here are three questions that I would love you to reflect on.
Emma:The first question is this What are the main reasons driving my desire to quit?
Emma:You see we need to identify whether the feelings stem from something temporary, i.
Emma:e Holiday blues or something deeper within the business that may need addressing.
Emma:That could be staff challenges It could be systems challenges.
Emma:It could be All of the things.
Emma:It may be that you're feeling the external pressure, or if you're
Emma:like me, the internal pressure.
Emma:You may feel overwhelmed by the decisions that need to be made,
Emma:of which there are thousands.
Emma:Or the expectations that you feel like others are putting on you.
Emma:You might also be a bit scared of failure.
Emma:We've all been there.
Emma:So we quit rather than dealing with it head on.
Emma:If you ask yourself the question, you still can't come up with an answer.
Emma:Ask yourself a couple more times the why question, right?
Emma:So if you ask yourself the question, what is the main
Emma:reason driving my desire to quit?
Emma:And you answer, well, the external pressure is too much.
Emma:Ask yourself the next question.
Emma:Why is the external pressure too much?
Emma:And then when you reach that answer, ask why again, sometimes just going a
Emma:bit deeper helps that little bit more.
Emma:Yeah.
Emma:Number two, ask yourself, Have I exhausted all options to
Emma:resolve the current challenge?
Emma:Reflect on whether you have explored all potential solutions, support
Emma:systems, resources, or changes that could improve the situation before
Emma:making the decision to walk away.
Emma:As I said before, any business owner will tell you the amount of decisions
Emma:they need to make in a day is enormous.
Emma:Sometimes you look back and you see that you've rushed to a conclusion without
Emma:fully exploring alternative strategies or seeking out external advice and you think,
Emma:D'oh, I probably should have done that.
Emma:And what if the key to overcoming your current struggle lies in an untried
Emma:approach or a collaboration with someone who brings a fresh perspective?
Emma:Are you truly open to change?
Emma:That's the question.
Emma:And then my third and final question is this.
Emma:What are the long term implications of quitting for me
Emma:personally and professionally?
Emma:You need to consider how quitting may impact your career trajectory.
Emma:Your financial stability, your emotional well being.
Emma:For me, it would be about flexibility as well as any potential opportunities
Emma:that you might miss in the future.
Emma:This question is kind of where reality bites, right?
Emma:Imagine for a moment that you did quit your business.
Emma:What does that feel like?
Emma:Are you sad?
Emma:Are you elated?
Emma:If you quit, it could mean closing the door on the lessons and the growth
Emma:that you have already experienced.
Emma:Or it could also mean new avenues for exploration, right?
Emma:Question.
Emma:Do you define your success solely through the lens of business?
Emma:I have to ask question a lot.
Emma:Do you define your success solely through the lens of your business?
Emma:And what does that mean for the future?
Emma:I realize that these don't just stop at the first question.
Emma:These questions aren't necessarily easy to answer.
Emma:But before you throw in the towel and go, it's all too hard, make sure you've
Emma:reflected long enough to know that it is actually the right thing for you.
Emma:One more thing.
Emma:In 2024, I noticed that a lot of business owners were finding it a grind.
Emma:We saw businesses closing on the daily.
Emma:We saw people, trying to hustle and not necessarily getting anywhere.
Emma:People were tired.
Emma:People were exhausted.
Emma:The few last few years has really caught up with people.
Emma:And so they were just finding it a real grind.
Emma:They weren't looking after themselves.
Emma:They weren't doing enough self care, and they definitely were not having much fun.
Emma:I think a lot of my clients at the time were trying to work out this balance.
Emma:I don't like to call it balance.
Emma:It's just balance of life.
Emma:And sometimes the self care flew out the window.
Emma:I think bringing joy back in as a self care option Joy may make a significant
Emma:difference to your outlook, to your mindset, and to your business.
Emma:And joy doesn't have to be the big things.
Emma:They can be a warm, sweet cup of tea, a stroll in nature, or
Emma:for me, a roller skating class.
Emma:Just make sure that you incorporate joy regardless of your decision.
Emma:Life is too short to be doing a job or a business that you don't love but just
Emma:make sure you've worked out the bits that you don't love and the bits that you do
Emma:love so that when you go into the next thing you pick up the bits that you love
Emma:and you outsource the bits you don't love.
Emma:I would love to know your thoughts on this episode and my bias is that I would
Emma:love more women to stay in the business world, whatever that looks like for them.
Emma:I love supporting women who have their own business and they're trying
Emma:to be better for financial reasons, for their family, have flexibility.
Emma:There's so many amazing things that women bring and.
Emma:I would love to see them stay in business just a little bit longer if possible.
Emma:So they're my three questions for today.
Emma:I realize there's more than three.
Emma:Please take the time to reflect and let me know what your thoughts are.